Check out a reference to my blog by Jessica Linpack, the author of many books and articles on virtual teams and someone who is also considered an expert in virtual teams.
See: http://endlessknots.netage.com/. The post was posted on 18 August 2009.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
IT Does Matter
Virtual Projects are mainly enabled by Information Technology. The rapid development in technology has made it possible for organisations to readily pursue the use of virtual teams (Rad & Levin,2003).
Since technology plays such a central role in virtual teams, a number of factors such as team profile, project type and length, hardware compatibility etc have to be carefully considered before the technology is procured (Machet, 2001). Furthermore, the technology has to be installed, fully functional and the entire team should be proficient in its use
In their book, Mastering Virtual Teams, Duarte and Snyder (1999) identify two categories of technology tools available to virtual teams, i.e. Synchronous and Asynchronous.
Synchronous include:
- Real Time Data Conferencing
- Electronic Meeting Systems
- Electronic Displays
- Video Conferencing
Asynchronous include:
- Email
- Group Calendars
- Blogs
- Workflow Application Software
However one cannot ignore the rise in the use of social network tools (SNT). Virtual project teams can take advantage of these tools not only for project collaboration purposes, but as tools for team development. A real life example of this is a financial institution in South Africa, which has launched its own version on twitter in order to connect employees across all the countries (over 40) in which it has a presence. In addition to this, the organisation has set up a corporate blog which is used by employees to share information. This organisation also has twitter , FaceBook, Youtube and RSS Feeds accounts. So not only is this organisation taking advantage to connect employees across the globe, but it is also connecting with its customers for free through SNT.
This blog references the following authors:
- Duarte, D.L., & Snyder, N.T. 1999. Mastering Virtual Teams. San Francisco. Jossey Bass Publishing
- Machet, R. 2001. An Investigation into the Effectiveness Of Using Virtual Project Teams To Manage Projects Across Borders and Time Zones. A research report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering, University of Witwatersrand.
- Rad, P. & Levin, G. 2003. Achieving Project Management Success using Virtual Teams. Florida. J.Ross Publishing.
Since technology plays such a central role in virtual teams, a number of factors such as team profile, project type and length, hardware compatibility etc have to be carefully considered before the technology is procured (Machet, 2001). Furthermore, the technology has to be installed, fully functional and the entire team should be proficient in its use
In their book, Mastering Virtual Teams, Duarte and Snyder (1999) identify two categories of technology tools available to virtual teams, i.e. Synchronous and Asynchronous.
Synchronous include:
- Real Time Data Conferencing
- Electronic Meeting Systems
- Electronic Displays
- Video Conferencing
Asynchronous include:
- Group Calendars
- Blogs
- Workflow Application Software
However one cannot ignore the rise in the use of social network tools (SNT). Virtual project teams can take advantage of these tools not only for project collaboration purposes, but as tools for team development. A real life example of this is a financial institution in South Africa, which has launched its own version on twitter in order to connect employees across all the countries (over 40) in which it has a presence. In addition to this, the organisation has set up a corporate blog which is used by employees to share information. This organisation also has twitter , FaceBook, Youtube and RSS Feeds accounts. So not only is this organisation taking advantage to connect employees across the globe, but it is also connecting with its customers for free through SNT.
This blog references the following authors:
- Duarte, D.L., & Snyder, N.T. 1999. Mastering Virtual Teams. San Francisco. Jossey Bass Publishing
- Machet, R. 2001. An Investigation into the Effectiveness Of Using Virtual Project Teams To Manage Projects Across Borders and Time Zones. A research report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering, University of Witwatersrand.
- Rad, P. & Levin, G. 2003. Achieving Project Management Success using Virtual Teams. Florida. J.Ross Publishing.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Can a Relationship Survive Long Distance?
Team Member to Team Member Trust
Being in a virtual team can be compared to being in a long distance relationship. To sustain such a relationship, trust is of the utmost importance. The trust issue applies to virtual teams in that, for this type of team to be successful, there is a level of trust is required amongst team members (Crossman & Lee-Kelly 2004,). James and Bowie (1998) point out that a virtual team presents a paradox of structural properties that work against building trust. Trust is built through some form of shared cultural history, however in a virtual team; members may come from different cultures without any previous working relationship. Thus in such a team structure it is harder to assume that the requirements for trust-building behaviour are shared by all team members (Cummings & Bromiley, 1996). Trust building is further exacerbated by the use computer mediated communication (CMM) as this has been shown to be less robust than face-to-face communication.
Project Manager to Team Member Trust
It can be argued that project managers rely on what they can ‘see’ rather than what has been achieved as a determinant of team member’s commitment. The “If I can’t see them, how can I be sure they are working” mentality will not work for a virtual team manager. Research has shown that team members will only behave in a trustworthy manner if they believe that the organisation demonstrates trust towards them (Crossman et al., 2004 ). This means that the virtual project manager has to adopt this stance in order to build trust with team members.
Evidence has shown that trust is a contentious issue within virtual teams, it requires commitment from all team members. Although it may be difficult to develop, it does develop over time.
Being in a virtual team can be compared to being in a long distance relationship. To sustain such a relationship, trust is of the utmost importance. The trust issue applies to virtual teams in that, for this type of team to be successful, there is a level of trust is required amongst team members (Crossman & Lee-Kelly 2004,). James and Bowie (1998) point out that a virtual team presents a paradox of structural properties that work against building trust. Trust is built through some form of shared cultural history, however in a virtual team; members may come from different cultures without any previous working relationship. Thus in such a team structure it is harder to assume that the requirements for trust-building behaviour are shared by all team members (Cummings & Bromiley, 1996). Trust building is further exacerbated by the use computer mediated communication (CMM) as this has been shown to be less robust than face-to-face communication.
Project Manager to Team Member Trust
It can be argued that project managers rely on what they can ‘see’ rather than what has been achieved as a determinant of team member’s commitment. The “If I can’t see them, how can I be sure they are working” mentality will not work for a virtual team manager. Research has shown that team members will only behave in a trustworthy manner if they believe that the organisation demonstrates trust towards them (Crossman et al., 2004 ). This means that the virtual project manager has to adopt this stance in order to build trust with team members.
Evidence has shown that trust is a contentious issue within virtual teams, it requires commitment from all team members. Although it may be difficult to develop, it does develop over time.
This post references:
- Crossman, A. & Lee-Kelly, L. 2004. Trust, commitment and team working: the paradox of virtual organisations. Global Networks. Vol.4 Issue 4
- Cummings, L.L., & Bromiley, P. 1996. The organisational Trust Inventory (OTI) development and validation. In Crossman, A. & Lee-Kelly, L. Trust, commitment and team working: the paradox of virtual organisations. Global Networks. Vol.4 Issue 4
- Jones, T.M., & Bowie, N.E. 1998. ‘Moral Hazards on the road to the virtual corporation, Business Ethics Quarterly. Vol. 8
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Strengthening a Virtual Team
Research has shown that the development of personal relationships between virtual team members is an important factor for working relationships (Pauleen & Yoong, 2001). Stronger relational links have been associated with higher performance (Warkentin & Beranek, 1999). Team building in a virtual team is made complex by technology, differing cultures, languages, time zones as well as distance. In my opinion, the team building of a virtual team should not be the responsibility of the project manager. This role should be fulfilled by a dedicated individual (virtual team change manager) as it is just an important a role as the management of the project will contribute to the team’s success.
According to Pauleen and Yoong (2001), there are at least 3 types of boundaries that a virtual change manager has to facilitate i.e.
Organisational – this type of boundary would occur for instance in a merger. When two organisations become one, it is the fusing of different work styles. Therefore it is the change manager’s role to bridge this gap between the team members and create a cohesive team with a single style of work (which all teams are satisfied with). In this case, change managers have to employ formal methodologies on how this can be achieved.
Cultural and Language – this type of boundary would occur in a global team which spans different countries. Culture has effects on how team members relate to each other. Miscommunication can occur if team members interpret conversations according to their own cultural programming. In this instance, the change manager has to design creative strategies to cross this boundary. An example of how this can be done, is educating the different cultures represented in a team about each other; teaching a word or sentence from each culture etc.
Time and Distance – this is a classic boundary that a virtual team has to overcome. The effect of distance on relationship building strategies is proportional to how far the team members are from each other (Pauline & Yoong, 2001). Since virtual teams rely on technology, this type of boundary would restrict the kinds of communication channels available to the change manager. Thus the change manger has to take into considerations these types of restrictions when building team building strategies.
In my view, team building in a virtual team is not an impossible task, but it is certainly challenging. Virtual team managers have to assess potential obstacles before creating relationship building strategies. With the right technology, training, experience and organizational support, these boundaries can be crossed.
This post references the following authors:
- Pauleen D.J. & Yoong, P. 2001. Relationship building and the use of ICT in boundary-crossing virtual teams: a facilitator’s perspective. Journal of Information Technology. Vol.16
- Warkentin, M. & Beranek, P.M. 1999. Training to Improve Virtual Team Communication. Information Systems Journal. Vol.9
According to Pauleen and Yoong (2001), there are at least 3 types of boundaries that a virtual change manager has to facilitate i.e.
Organisational – this type of boundary would occur for instance in a merger. When two organisations become one, it is the fusing of different work styles. Therefore it is the change manager’s role to bridge this gap between the team members and create a cohesive team with a single style of work (which all teams are satisfied with). In this case, change managers have to employ formal methodologies on how this can be achieved.
Cultural and Language – this type of boundary would occur in a global team which spans different countries. Culture has effects on how team members relate to each other. Miscommunication can occur if team members interpret conversations according to their own cultural programming. In this instance, the change manager has to design creative strategies to cross this boundary. An example of how this can be done, is educating the different cultures represented in a team about each other; teaching a word or sentence from each culture etc.
Time and Distance – this is a classic boundary that a virtual team has to overcome. The effect of distance on relationship building strategies is proportional to how far the team members are from each other (Pauline & Yoong, 2001). Since virtual teams rely on technology, this type of boundary would restrict the kinds of communication channels available to the change manager. Thus the change manger has to take into considerations these types of restrictions when building team building strategies.
In my view, team building in a virtual team is not an impossible task, but it is certainly challenging. Virtual team managers have to assess potential obstacles before creating relationship building strategies. With the right technology, training, experience and organizational support, these boundaries can be crossed.
This post references the following authors:
- Pauleen D.J. & Yoong, P. 2001. Relationship building and the use of ICT in boundary-crossing virtual teams: a facilitator’s perspective. Journal of Information Technology. Vol.16
- Warkentin, M. & Beranek, P.M. 1999. Training to Improve Virtual Team Communication. Information Systems Journal. Vol.9
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Challenges in Virtual Project Management
As I thought about the current project management methodologies, I assumed they would not apply to virtual team project management. But in hindsight (for lack of a better word), they should apply because projects are the same irrespective of the type of team, furthermore, the end goal is the same for all types of projects (virtual or not), i.e. deliver solution/project in time and within budget.
Over and above project planning, stakeholder management, managing risks and budgets, resource planning, project managers of virtual teams face unique challenges which may result delays of projects if not addressed up-front. These are:
- Trust: how does the project manager trust the work of the people s/he has not met? Cultural differences if they exist can further add to this challenge;
- Group Identity: this is a result of having shared experiences with the people you work with, but in the case of virtual team, this is absent;
- Information Sharing: according to Robbins (1994), most individuals define a team as a “group of individuals interacting and interdependent, who come together to achieve particular objectives”. The essence of working in a team is the ability to share information, however in a virtual team this can be a challenge. Due to differing time-zones, and the added burden of not having opportunities for informal chats, the project manager for a virtual team has to find other ways to ensure that the entire team is on the same page with regards to the project and the organisation.
- Clear Structures: efficiency in any team is important, in my view it must be one of the top priorities for a project manager who manages a virtual team. To do this, the project manager has to define and communicate the teams’ work structure. This includes roles and responsibilities of team members, meeting formats, frequency etc.
- Managing Cliques: cliques in any type of team are inevitable, but in a virtual team they become particularly difficult to manage as the project manager is not necessarily at the same site as the team members. Therefore team members on the same site are likely to form a clique. Cliques have potential to create antagonism and competition in a team. So on top of managing stakeholders, the project manager has to manage the cliques to ensure they do not jeopardize the project
- Communication: although I have listed this last, it is definitely not the least. It is normally said “less is more”, but this is one of the saying that does not apply to virtual teams. In fact the “more the merrier” is more like it. However the project manager has to guard against information overload, this sounds like a contradiction, but a balance is required between frequency and communication tool.
This post references the following authors:
Roebuck D.B, & Britt A.C. 2002. Virtual Teaming Has Come to Stay—Guidelines and Strategies for Success. Southern Business Review, Fall 2002.
Over and above project planning, stakeholder management, managing risks and budgets, resource planning, project managers of virtual teams face unique challenges which may result delays of projects if not addressed up-front. These are:
- Trust: how does the project manager trust the work of the people s/he has not met? Cultural differences if they exist can further add to this challenge;
- Group Identity: this is a result of having shared experiences with the people you work with, but in the case of virtual team, this is absent;
- Information Sharing: according to Robbins (1994), most individuals define a team as a “group of individuals interacting and interdependent, who come together to achieve particular objectives”. The essence of working in a team is the ability to share information, however in a virtual team this can be a challenge. Due to differing time-zones, and the added burden of not having opportunities for informal chats, the project manager for a virtual team has to find other ways to ensure that the entire team is on the same page with regards to the project and the organisation.
- Clear Structures: efficiency in any team is important, in my view it must be one of the top priorities for a project manager who manages a virtual team. To do this, the project manager has to define and communicate the teams’ work structure. This includes roles and responsibilities of team members, meeting formats, frequency etc.
- Managing Cliques: cliques in any type of team are inevitable, but in a virtual team they become particularly difficult to manage as the project manager is not necessarily at the same site as the team members. Therefore team members on the same site are likely to form a clique. Cliques have potential to create antagonism and competition in a team. So on top of managing stakeholders, the project manager has to manage the cliques to ensure they do not jeopardize the project
- Communication: although I have listed this last, it is definitely not the least. It is normally said “less is more”, but this is one of the saying that does not apply to virtual teams. In fact the “more the merrier” is more like it. However the project manager has to guard against information overload, this sounds like a contradiction, but a balance is required between frequency and communication tool.
This post references the following authors:
Roebuck D.B, & Britt A.C. 2002. Virtual Teaming Has Come to Stay—Guidelines and Strategies for Success. Southern Business Review, Fall 2002.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
What's the history of virtual teams
Virtual teams are defined as groups that work "across space, time and organizational boundaries with links strengthened by webs of communication technologies." (Linpack & Stamps, 1997).
Nunamaker, Reinig & Briggs (2009) define virtual teams as:
- Multiple Organizations
- Multiple Locations
- Multiple Teams
- Multiple Time Zones
- Multiple Cultures
When we talk about virtual teams, we automatically think about IT projects, however virtual teams exist in other types of organisations such as the military and government. If you think about it, military organisations are the oldest organisations to operate virtually, with minimum technology…telephones at the time. The emergence of virtual teams in organisations stems from globalisation as well as the development of information technology. In 2004, it was estimated that 8.4 million employees in the US alone are members of one or more virtual teams. It had also been estimated that by 2005 20% of the world’s workers would be working virtually. In 2009 an organisation in the banking industry in South Africa has a presence in 49 countries across the world, the success of this organisation in all these countries will be through collaboration of the workers in the different countries.
Nunamaker, Reinig & Briggs (2009) define virtual teams as:
- Multiple Organizations
- Multiple Locations
- Multiple Teams
- Multiple Time Zones
- Multiple Cultures
When we talk about virtual teams, we automatically think about IT projects, however virtual teams exist in other types of organisations such as the military and government. If you think about it, military organisations are the oldest organisations to operate virtually, with minimum technology…telephones at the time. The emergence of virtual teams in organisations stems from globalisation as well as the development of information technology. In 2004, it was estimated that 8.4 million employees in the US alone are members of one or more virtual teams. It had also been estimated that by 2005 20% of the world’s workers would be working virtually. In 2009 an organisation in the banking industry in South Africa has a presence in 49 countries across the world, the success of this organisation in all these countries will be through collaboration of the workers in the different countries.
This shows that virtual teams are here to stay and organisations which want to stay competitive in the global village should adapt to this type of working structure.
In my next post i will discuss the management or leadership of this type of team. Is it really that different from the traditional face to face team?
This post references the following authors:
Managing the Life cycle of Virtual Teams
Lipnack, J. & Stamps, J. 1997. Virtual teams reaching across space, time and organizations with technology. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Nunamaker, JF., Reinig, AB & Briggs, RO. 2009. Principles for effective virtual teams. Communications of the ACM. Vol 52(4)
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